Atmospheric Measurements Using Kites

Accurate predictive modeling of certain atmospheric phenomena suffers from a dearth of information. This is particularly true recently as the COVID pandemic has forced many commercial airline operations to cut back flights, a significant source of atmospheric measurements. In situ measurements are also currently made through the use of balloon borne soundings or dropsondes which can provide measurements over the entire vertical profile, but are limited to sampling over a small time period. In situ measurements can be augmented with satellites, however, these suffer from its relatively low spatial density and limited frequency of measurement. A need exists for targeted in situ data, in a repeatable manner and using a recoverable vehicle. To this end an inexpensive and lightweight atmospheric measurement system has been combined with the NASA AREN Aeropod system to provide accurate turbulence and wind velocities from kites capable of long endurance and high altitude flights. This full-featured sensor suite will provide critical boundary layer information necessary to gain a better understanding of the processes affected by atmospheric flux.